Rhaegar Targaryen (Histories and Lore)
"Rhaegar Targaryen" is part of the Histories and Lore, a special feature in the Blu-Ray of Season 6 of Game of Thrones. It is narrated by Conleth Hill as Lord Varys. Narration Varys: ''"Every time a Targaryen breeds, the Gods flip a coin. Oh, the clarity of that phrase cannot possibly be calculated. No man can truly tell when or how a new Targaryen will be a benevolent leader....or a dangerous madman. Maybe the coin that the Gods flipped answered our prayers in some way when we were blessed with the young Prince Rhaegar Targaryen. He was born in Summerhall, during the great Tragedy that took place there - the Tragedy that struck down King Aegon Targaryen, the Fifth of His Name, Prince Duncan Targaryen and Ser Duncan the Tall, Lord Commander of the Kingsguard. If I remember correctly, there were certain Targaryen kings that believed they would be incarnated gloriously in flames. How poetic, that one of them was born in flames to achieve greatness.'' Prince Rhaegar Targaryen was, from the year dot, a very clever young man. He read all the time, almost obsessively, until one day he suddenly decided that he ought to take up the sword and train in arms. To this day, even a man such as I doesn't know exactly why he did so. Perhaps, it was something that he read. Perhaps it was a dream he dreamed. Or, maybe he just changed his mind, like all men do. Nevertheless, he took up swordcraft and was knighted at the age of seventeen. However, he never loved the dreadful shrieks of dancing blades the way men like Robert Baratheon or Ser Gregor Clegane love it - it was rumoured that he enjoyed his harp a lot more than his sword. Rhaegar faced extreme complications in terms of Targaryen traditions: See, he had no sisters to wed and bed, as per the way of his House, and King Aerys scoured the Seven Kingdoms, apparently even Essos, for a suitable bride. Imagine that? Having your bride selected by your madman of a father, and not having a choice in the matter. If Rhaegar hated that at all, he never showed it. Not like his father did with Queen Rhaella, thank the Gods. Eventually, it came to wedding Princess Elia Martell of Dorne, the Red Viper's sister, of all people. They had two children, respectively Rhaenys and Aegon. For all I know, they were quite happy. Maybe not. Maybe if they were happy, then Rhaegar would not have made a show of himself at the Tourney of Harrenhal when he upturned every opponent he tilted against, and then paraded the grounds in front of the applauding crowd...moved right past his wife Elia and laid a winter rose crown on the lap of Lyanna Stark of Winterfell! Heavens above, I do not know what possessed the young prince to do that. Her brother was the son of the Lord of Winterfell, and her ''lover ''was Robert Baratheon of Storm's End. As you can imagine, when Rhaegar seized Lyanna Stark, the Wolf and the Stag charged on the Dragons with a fury unlike anything I have ever seen. For good or ill, Prince Rhaegar had plunged the Seven Kingdoms into civil war. Prince Rhaegar spent the dawn of the Rebellion at the Tower of Joy with Lyanna Stark, until the Mad King sent Ser Gerold Hightower of the Kingsguard to retrieve him. Leaving Lyanna at the Tower under the protection of Ser Gerold Hightower, Ser Arthur Dayne and Ser Oswell Whent, Rhaegar returned to the war that he'd started. Maybe, if he'd stayed with Lyanna and defied his father, he would still be alive to see Lyanna Stark die - why, isn't that ultimately the true wish of every lover? He fought on the front line during the Rebellion, which climaxed on the Trident against the very man who wanted Lyanna back. The Battle of the Trident was, according to those who survived it, a truly spectacular collision of armies, and nothing exemplified this opinion quite like when Prince Rhaegar Targaryen faced Lord Robert Baratheon on the fords of the Trident. The duel that took place between the young dragon and the young stag was, if the ramblings of poets and historians is to believed, the greatest duel to have ever been fought in the Seven Kingdoms. The two men fought with the fury of twenty men each, and Rhaegar even managed to wound Robert. But wounds don't always kill, unfortunately, and Robert ended Rhaegar's life with a mighty blow of his warhammer to the chest. The rubies of Rhaegar's armour exploded into the waters of the Trident, where that river is now remembered as 'the Ruby Ford'. The moment Rhaegar died, the war was lost for the Targaryens. King's Landing fell, Princess Elia was murdered along with her two children, and King Aerys the Mad was struck down at the foot of his own throne by Ser Jaime Lannister. Lyanna died, in the arms of her brother so I hear, and the White Bull, the Sword of the Morning and Ser Oswell Whent fell trying to bar the Starks from her. But, I still have hope - Rhaegar left two siblings: That sadistic fool, Viserys the Beggar King...and Queen Daenerys Targaryen the Mother of Dragons. The Gods flipped a coin for Rhaegar's brother and made him a madman. His sister has not quite met that expectation, but who knows? The God's coin ''could land on the same side twice.'' For the sake of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, I hope not. Appearance Characters * Prince Rhaegar Targaryen * King Aerys II Targaryen * King Aegon V Targaryen * Prince Duncan Targaryen * Ser Duncan the Tall * Princess Elia Martell * Aegon Targaryen (Son of Rhaegar) * Rhaenys Targaryen * Queen Rhaella Targaryen * King Robert I Baratheon * Lord Eddard Stark * Lyanna Stark * Ser Gregor Clegane * Ser Arthur Dayne * Ser Gerold Hightower * Ser Oswell Whent * Ser Jaime Lannister Category:Histories & Lore